Gutsy, steadfast, a fine blend of traditional and the contemporary, strong yet fragile.Put them all together and you get the image of the Millennium Woman! Women are today stepping out of their homes to build an identity of their own. They are extremely perceptive about their careers, responsible towards the family and also fashion and figure conscious. Like professional jugglers, they balance all these most dexterously. This obviously is a tough task. Some compare it to a time bomb ticking off. ``One small mistake and you are gone,'' says Ipshita Kapoor, a software consultant. A woman is conventionally required to manage the home front. So, when she decides to take up a career, all eyes rest on her. ``People are always ready to point out the mistakes. Accolades for success are hard to get,'' says Ipshita.A major factor pertaining to career women is getting family support, specially support from the husband. After grovelling at the workplace the woman is still required to do the household chores. Some take it as a big challenge. They feel the need to prove their mettle on both fronts. This of course is a herculean task but success at it gives them immense satisfaction. However, attitudes are fast changing. Credit also goes to those better halves who help their wives pursue their careers. Husbands today do not mind helping out at home. Many of them don't mind staying at home if an emergency situation arises. Most of the times other members of the family are also supportive. ``My husband supported me at every step,'' says Pratibha Deshpande, an entrepreneur.Today women are not only successful professionally, but are also excellent at home management. Such women also believe that they need some space of their own. This explains the growing number of women fitness freaks at the various gymnasiums and health clubs. ``I want to look good not only for my husband and children, but more so for myself,'' says Anjani Gupta an entrepreneur. Fashionable clothes, glowing skin and makeup makes them feel good and confident. A host of career women join classes to learn music, dance, painting or judo for that matter. This, they say gives them some time off from family and work tensions. The fact that these are career women, fitness and fashion conscious does not mean they neglect their families.In fact they are more receptive towards the home front.``I get up at four in the morning in order to cook, clean, pack the children off to school and then work nine to five at office,'' says Ipshita. Many admit feeling guilty for not having been able to give their fullest at home. This sense of guilt makes them work even more harder back home. ``Family and home are my priorities,'' says Pratibha Deshpande. But these women have their share of problems too. Ours being a patriarchal society, acceptance and appreciation for a career woman is hard to come. Her capability is questioned at both fronts. Her earnings are usually considered to be pocket money. At the workplace she is many a times not given important portfolios. This is assuming that the woman cannot handle both her house and the job simultaneously. Even at home she is constantly under pressure. Most career women say that their children hardly ever talk about their careers as they do about their fathers'. This, they feel is unjustified.Even after going through the innumerable trials and tribulations these women still feel the need for themselves to have careers. They believe that since society is changing, things would be easier for their daughters. Also, the need for teaching the boys to adjust and adapt to a working wife is greatly felt. Our society is still in its period of transition from the traditional to the modern, and so is the image of a woman. Breaking up of the joint family system has proved to be both a boon and a bane. Some say that they no longer have to adapt to differing attitudes at home. Others believe it was easier since they could trust their children and home to the other family members. So, kudos to the career women who have magnificently handled both their homes and their jobs.
